Nintendo announces new product revisions in Europe with replaceable batteries

Post by tzs » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 8:07 PM UTC

vrganj wrote: post #97

reaperducer wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Removable batteries were standard fare for decades before Apple came around and set negative precedent. You must be newly hatched. I have plenty of devices in my gadget box with non-replaceable batteries that pre-date Apple's iPhones, and even its iPods.

Sure. But I bet you also have plenty of gadgets with replaceable batteries. Just because something is standard fare doesn't mean it's the only option. Point is, it was quite common in the past.

Post by munk-a » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 8:14 PM UTC

Waterluvian wrote: post #82

nolok wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Disagree. The market will not decide on that, at least for the nintendo product. Your or your kid want the switch and the pokemon and mario and others game, you're buying the switch, you don't switch to something else because the something else allows battery switch. That's Nintendo's entire business model and the reason why they've been thriving since for ever in gaming and even the bad times where actually positive…

I don't think customers need to be protected from themselves. If they don't like the hardware but buy it anyways because they really like the game, that's a choice. And I feel that when we're dealing with luxury goods, we should give consumers very broad discretion to vote with their money.

Post by munk-a » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 8:21 PM UTC

square_usual wrote: post #53

endemic wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My take is they didn't optimize for something that a small percentage of users would have problems with.

It's not really a small percentage of users. All users will have trouble with the battery - eventually. My DS4s ran out of battery life in about three years of usage; I still have one of them that I use wired with my PC, but I absolutely cannot use it wireless. Likewise with my DS5s - one of them barely held a charge 2-3 years in. I'm sure with good battery management you can extend the lifespan to be closer to 5-6 y…

Post by sandworm101 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 8:27 PM UTC

calvinmorrison wrote: post #144

arghwhat wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be clear, all the mentioned Nintendo products are already designed for battery replacement, with well-contained battery units and easy connectors, and the batteries are available and problem-free to replace unlike for a certain fruit company. The redesign is because the ease of accessing the batteries did not comply with the new rules. The pro controller in particular requires almost complete disassembly to get to…

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Post by weberer » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 9:11 PM UTC

thih9 wrote: post #5

benoau wrote: post #3

Amazes me they don't just sell it like that everywhere because it sounds a lot like a product improvement... > The revised products will be available on a rolling basis in territories where Nintendo of Europe conducts business, either directly or through a distributor, namely: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy,…

Quite a few of these aren't EU members, some aren't even in Europe; do we know why they were added? e.g.: Switzerland or United Kingdom; but also Oman or United Arab Emirates.